An open-source alternative to Microsoft Project you can host
For a team that plans work in Microsoft Project, the closest free and open-source replacement is OpenProject: Gantt charts, scheduling with dependencies, a work breakdown structure, agile boards, time tracking and budgets, in a browser, on a server you control. For a smaller team that wants something simpler, Leantime covers tasks, timelines and timesheets with far less to run. This article explains what each includes, how to bring existing plans across, and where to run them.
Start with the question that decides the tool
Microsoft Project is used in two different ways, and the replacement depends on which one is yours.
- One planner building schedules on a desktop, sharing them as files. A desktop tool that opens Project files may be all you need.
- A team running projects together, with tasks assigned, updated and reported in one place. That calls for a web application everyone can reach.
Most businesses looking to leave Microsoft Project are in the second group, so that is where this article concentrates.
OpenProject: the closest replacement
OpenProject is free software under the GNU General Public License version 3, actively developed, with version 17.9 released in the autumn of 2026. Its free Community edition includes, according to OpenProject's own feature comparison:
- Planning: work packages, Gantt charts and timelines, automatic and manual scheduling, and a work breakdown structure
- Agile: Kanban and Scrum boards, backlogs and sprint boards
- Tracking: time tracking, costs, budgets and reports
- Collaboration: meetings, a calendar, a wiki, forums and documents with shared editing
- Administration: custom fields and workflows, project templates, LDAP sign-in, two-factor authentication, an API, and integrations with GitHub, GitLab and Nextcloud
Paid Enterprise add-ons layer on features such as a team planner, Gantt export to PDF, single sign-on, portfolio management and resource management. A team moving from Microsoft Project can do the day-to-day planning entirely on the Community edition, and add Enterprise features later only if it needs them.
What it takes to run
OpenProject runs on Ruby with a PostgreSQL database. Its recommended installation for smaller teams is Docker Compose. Its minimum hardware for up to 200 users is a four-core processor, 4 GB of memory and 20 GB of free disk. Note that OpenProject has said future features may ship only in its Docker images, so Docker is the safer route for a new installation.
Leantime: lighter, for smaller teams
Leantime is free software under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3, aimed at small teams and people who are not project managers by training. Its open-source version includes tasks shown as a Kanban board, a Gantt timeline, a table, a list or a calendar, with subtasks, dependencies and milestones, plus timesheets, wikis and goals. Some extra plugins are sold separately.
Leantime is a plain PHP application with a MySQL or MariaDB database, which makes it far lighter to host than OpenProject. It needs PHP 8.2 or later and a scheduled task that runs at least every fifteen minutes.
Bringing your existing plans across
Be realistic about Microsoft Project files: neither web application imports them directly.
- OpenProject documents a route through Excel: export the plan from Microsoft Project to Excel, then use OpenProject's free Excel synchronisation workbook to upload the work packages, with their hierarchy and relations. OpenProject lists it as a workaround that is not officially integrated.
- Leantime imports tasks, milestones, users and projects from CSV files, so the plan comes across as a spreadsheet export.
- GanttProject, a free desktop application under the GPL version 3, reads Microsoft Project's .mpp, .mpx and XML files. It is a useful way to open old plans and keep them readable once the Project licences lapse.
For most teams the cleanest move is to bring across the open projects and their tasks, and keep the finished projects as archived files.
Which to choose
| OpenProject | Leantime | |
|---|---|---|
| Licence | GNU GPL v3 | GNU AGPL v3 |
| Best for | Teams that plan in detail with schedules and dependencies | Small teams that want simple task and timeline tracking |
| Gantt and scheduling | Full, with automatic scheduling | Timeline with milestones and dependencies |
| Agile boards | Kanban and Scrum | Kanban |
| Time and cost | Time tracking, costs, budgets | Timesheets |
| Built with | Ruby, PostgreSQL | PHP, MySQL or MariaDB |
| Runs on | A server of its own | Web hosting with a recent PHP, or a server |
Hosting it with Noiz
- OpenProject runs on a Noiz Cloud server, a self-managed Ubuntu or Debian server with full root access, installed with OpenProject's Docker Compose set-up. Choose a server with at least four cores and 4 GB of memory.
- Leantime suits a Premium shared hosting plan, which offers a choice of PHP version and SSH, or a Cloud server if you prefer.
If you would rather have OpenProject or Leantime installed, kept up to date and backed up for you, get in touch and we will scope it with you.
Sources
Checked 19 October 2026.
OpenProject
- OpenProject on GitHub and releases
- System requirements and installation
- Community and Enterprise features
- Integrations and Excel synchronisation
Leantime
GanttProject
- GanttProject and source
Noiz
Note: while some of this content was produced with the help of AI, the final editing has been done by a real human being.
